The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-05-09
FIFTEEN LIVES LOST.
A Railing Gives Way and Precipitates One
Hundred People into the Mississippi River,

specia5 to the Indianapolis journal
NEW ORLEANS, La, May Sat noon to-day,
several thousand people assembled on the river
bank, at the head of Lizard street. to witnessthe
baptizing of several new converts in the river by
Elder Williams, of Mount Zion Baptist Church
(coloredl The baptizing was done in the shall
low water of a slip between two wharves Along
the edge of one Of the wharves a stout wood
railing. Crowded against this railing were
between eighty and one hundred white and
coiored people, principally children under thir-
teen years of age. Two thousand people
occupied the remaining part of the wharves. and
on the river several hundred people were view
ing the ceremonies from skiffs. In the midst of
the baptizing, the pressure against the railing
was great that it gave way and about one
hundred people were precipitated into the river.
In the descent they struck the skiffs, and some
ten or fifteen of these overturned and their
occupants thrown into the water. An inde-
scrbable scene followed. The water was alive
with struggling and drowning men. women and
children, who fought each other savagely for
possession of the overturned boats. One of the
dripping victims would drag himself into boat
only to have it overturned by another
sezing the gunwale and frantically struggling
to gain possession of the frail craft AS the
railing went down the people in the skiffs and
shore panic-stricken, and. for a few
minutes, could do nothing. The more tiuid of
the boatmen piled their paddles and left the
scene. while negro IS the bank screamed in
terror and filled the air with groans and sup
plications to God. A few seconds later num-
Der of the skifmen forced their frail crafts right
into the midst of the people in their eagerness to
rescue some of the drowning These boats were
seized by half dozen people at a time and were
quickly eapsized. Cooler headed men remained
out at the edge of the struggling
mass, and drew fifteen twenty persons from
the water. Others were rescued by those the
wharves, who held out broken pieces of tim Der,
and still others made their way to the shallow
water between the two wharves. Several, how
ever, were carried out into the stream and sank
Seven people are known to have been drowned
and the police place the total number of lives
lost high fifteen Those known to have
peTisned
Harriet Cook. white. aged seven; Amelia
Williams, colored, aged eight; Rose Ed
wards, colored, aged three; Rosa Lawrence,
colored, aged seven; child of Emeline Cornell
Richards, .colored; fveyear-old child of
Rene Royal. colored; unknown white
woman who sank with child in
her arms The child rose to the surface and
was rescued, but the woman was lost Rosalie
Williams, colored aged nineteen also sank with
infant in her This child was also
saved and the woman drowned An unknown
drawn under a hat-boat just below the wharf
and are known TO have been lost Evalne
Dephine and Eddie Cook, aged respectively,
fourteen and seven, were under the wharf in q
skiff and were seriously injured by a falling
beam. Ames Ryder was also severely hurt.